Next Cold War Roundup 8/26/16 Operation Euphrates Shield, a battle to take the town of Jarablus from ISIS included Turkish and American military, Turkish-backed Syrian opposition rebels, and the operation may have changed everything in the Syrian war. VP Joe Biden went to Turkey with copious praise and denials on

Though many scoffed when Jabhat Al-Nusra rebranded itself Jabhat Fateh Al-Sham, that cosmetic change was apparently enough to convince the US to start sending arms.

Next Cold War Roundup 8/23/16 The war in Syria has heated up on several fronts. The battle for Aleppo continues and the Syrian coalition is massing a bigger force. Fighting in northeastern Hasakah province threatens to escalate the war and the risk of conflict between Syria, Russia, Turkey and the

Next Cold War Roundup 8/19/16 On the fifth anniversary of the US government declaring that Assad must go, the battle for Aleppo rages and major political and military realignments are in the works. Syria bombed Kurdish security forces (Ayaysh), with US commandos nearby. The US scrambled fighter jets, warned Syria, and

Given how valuable Turkey is to US interests in the Middle East and how much of a priority Erdogan is making this extradition, one wonders if Gulen will be in PA for long.

Russian strategic bombers arrived at an Iranian air base this week and began flying airstrike missions in Syria from the base, and more in our global news round-up.

While the US defense industry gains billions selling weapons to Saudi Arabia, thousands of innocent civilians in Yemen lose their lives.

Next Cold War Roundup 8/12/16 Turkish Pres. Erdogan and Russian Pres. Putin held a summit in Russia, and continue discussions about Syria, where a large gap between their positions remain. US special forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) continue to stabilize the situation in Manbij, and outgoing commander MacFarland

News that US ground forces are now fighting in Libya means the US is now involved in at least four active wars.

Former CIA director and Clinton supporter Michael Morell lays out plans to escalate tensions with Iran and Russia, and more in our news round-up.